Employees traveling on behalf of the school district and performing approved school district business will be reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses up to the limits set by the Board in the teacher handbook. Actual and necessary travel expenses will include, but not be limited to, transportation and/or mileage costs, lodging expenses, meal expenses and actual registration costs up to the district’s approved limits.
Travel outside the School District
Travel outside of the school district must be pre-approved. Pre-approval will include an evaluation of the necessity of the travel, the reason for the travel and an estimate of the cost of the travel to qualify as approved school district business. Travel outside the school district by employees, other than the superintendent, will be approved by the superintendent.
Prior to reimbursement of actual and necessary expenses, the employee must provide the school district with an itemized list of expenses incurred in the performance of their duties and a receipt for all expenses incurred, other than a credit card receipt, indicating the date, purpose and nature of the expense for each claim item. In exceptional circumstances, the superintendent may allow a claim without proper receipt. Written documentation explaining the exceptional circumstances will be maintained as part of the school district's record of the claim.
Failure to have a detailed receipt will make the expense a personal expense. Personal expenses, including mileage, in excess of that required for the trip will be reimbursed by the employee to the school district no later than 10 working days following the date of the expense
Pre-approved expenses for transportation within three hundred miles of the school district administrative office will be by automobile. If a school district vehicle is not available, the employee will be reimbursed at the district rate per mile.
Travel within the School District
Employees required to travel in their personal vehicle between school district buildings to carry out the duties of their position will be reimbursed at the district rate per mile. It will be the responsibility of the superintendent to approve travel within the school district by employees. It will be the responsibility of the board to review the travel within the school district by the superintendent through the board's audit and approval process.
Employees who are allowed an in-school district travel allowance will have the amount of the allowance actually received during each calendar year included on the employee's W-2 form as taxable income according to the Internal Revenue Code.
The superintendent will be responsible for developing administrative regulations regarding actual and necessary expenses, in-school district travel allowances and assignment of school district vehicles. The administrative regulations will include the appropriate forms to be filed for reimbursement to the employee by the school district and the procedures for obtaining approval for travel outside of and within the school district.
At Request of School District
In unique situations where the district desires to send select personnel to a specific event, the superintendent may preapprove payment or reimbursement of registration, overnight, travel and/or meals at cost.
Legal Reference: Iowa Constitution, Art. III, § 31.
Iowa Code §§ 70A.9-.11 (2013).
1980 Op. Att'y Gen. 512.
Cross Reference: 216.3 Board of Directors' Member Compensation and Expenses
401.6 Transporting of Students by Employees
401.10 Credit Cards
904.1 Transporting Students in Private Vehicles
Approved: Feb. 10, 1997, March 19, 2012, December 19, 2017, July 20, 2018, August 20, 2018
Reviewed: Aug. 24, 2005, Nov. 9, 2009, Oct. 11, 2010, March 19, 2012, November 7, 2017, July 20, 2018
Revised: Dec. 14, 2009, Nov. 8, 2010, March 19, 2012
